How to sleep when the wind blows
April 30th, 2011
As a backpacking guide, people trust me not only with their safety but with their physical comfort as well. Thus far I think I have done a pretty good job of both. I'd like to say that I have some sort of primal instinct on how to keep people safe and comfy, but really it all goes back to a story I was told in my young days as an outdoor leader. It goes like this:
An old rancher, way out in the middle of nowhere, decides he has become too crotchety and tired to keep on running his ranch alone. So on one of his bi-monthly trips into town he posts a written add at the hardware store (he obviously didn't know about Craigslist) advertising the need for a hand. Months go by and no one responds. Then, one day a scrawny young man who doesn't look like he could tell a steer from a horseshoe shows up at the ranch. The old rancher was hoping for more of a Heath Ledger type, but there stood Jake Gyllenhaal...
Feeling that there was a misunderstanding, the rancher felt obligated to clarify the job description.
"There's no help for us out here. Ya gotta be independent and know what the hell yer doin'. There's a hundred things needs done everyday an I ain't got time to walk ya through every one of em. So why should I hire the likes of you?"
"Cuz I can sleep when the wind blows" was all the kid would say.
The rancher wasn't sure what sleeping had to do with anything, but seeing how nobody else had responded to the ad, he agreed to hire the kid on.
A couple months later the rancher goes to town for supplies, and intending to be gone overnight, leaves the ranch in care of the kid. Uncertain but willing to take a chance. Before he gets to town, however, a storm rolls in. A big storm, with huge black clouds and wind that could only conjure foreboding in a person. The rancher's skepticism of the kid's competance was too much. He began his return to the ranch expecting to find the operation in ruins.
When he reached the ranch the storm was in full force so instead of looking for the kid he ran around frantically checking on things. He found, to his surprise, that everything was as it should have been. Finally, soaked and tired, he entered the house to find the kid snoozing peacefully. The old rancher shook him awake and yelled,
"There's a hell of a storm out there!"
The kid, annoyed at having been awoken, says "Ya, I know."
"Well how can ya lay there and just sleep like that?"
"Cuz I prepared for the worst. Everythin's safe. I told ya, I can sleep when the wind blows."
that is the story's end, punchline and all. I always like to reflect on this story and what it means to be able to "sleep when the wind blows." At its' core I think it is an anecdote for risk management. Planning ahead and taking preparations to avoid future problems (CYA 101). The lesson can serve not only as a model for life in the outdoors, but for life in general. From a diversified investment portfolio to making sure someone knows where you're going to hike next weekend. A little work on the front end can save a big headache on the back.
I mean really, how many arms would Aron Ralston still have if he had had this story in mind?
